The Personnel Committee of the Russellville City Council will meet at 6 p.m. Monday to conduct interviews among the applicants for the city's finance director position.

Committee members began reviewing 11 resumes prior to Tuesday's Finance Committee and Agenda Preparation meetings at Russellville City Hall.

Next Monday is the final day the city will accept applications. Current treasurer (director of finance) Jennifer Humphrey turned in her letter of resignation Feb. 2 to Mayor Raye Turner. Her resignation will be effective Feb. 17, a day after the council's next scheduled meeting.

Applicants for the director of finance position included two from Russellville, two from Dover, one from Morrilton and the rest outside the Arkansas River Valley.

As of Tuesday, they were:

n Tori Apple, Searcy

n Brenda Austin,

Decaturville, Tenn.

n Boyle Bradley, Morrilton

n Tanya Byrum, Dover

n David Duncan, Little Rock

n James Elder, Hot Springs

n Troy Graham, Little Rock

n Danna Parker, Dover

n Cornelia Strickland,

Conway

n Jaclyn Walker, Russellville

n Shari Wilson, Russellville.

Council members at Tuesday's meetings agreed to meet at 4:45 p.m. Feb. 16, prior to the council's monthly meeting, to meet in executive session to have an exit interview with Humphrey, possibly hire a new director of finance and address Russellville Fire Department vacancies.

The rest of the council's February agenda is fairly lengthy, beginning with Humphrey's final report to aldermen as treasurer. Turner will present her annual, and final, state of the city address to the audience after the meeting begins at 6 p.m. Feb. 16.

Old business items include the second reading of an ordinance rezoning property from C-4 (commercial) to C-2 at 1000, 1010 and 1020 N. Arkansas and 1005, 1009, 1015 and 1023 N. Boston, submitted by Dow Dollar;

n Authorization of the mayor and city clerk Kathy Collins to sign a letter of agreement relating to maintenance and operation of the Downtown Depot.

Financial report

The city of Russellville started the year where it left off, outgoing treasurer Jennifer Humphrey said during Tuesday's City Council Finance Committee meeting at City Hall.

January revenues were .7 percent above projections. Sales tax revenue was .4 percent above target, while expenditures were .5 percent above target. Humphrey said after the usual payments and fees paid by the city at the beginning of the year, the city's financials were "close to projections and a good way to start the year."

Year-to-date financial numbers indicated the city brought in about $92,000-$93,000 more than was spent, she noted.

The council's finance agenda for the Feb. 16 council meeting include the appropriation of $2,220 in Oakland Cemetery donations and $5,507 to fund the remainder of last year's and this year's cemetery improvements.

Aldermen discussed a new appropriation of $47,000 to fund retirement termination pay for three firefighter positions with Fire Chief Dennis Miller and Humphrey. Miller said this was due to recent law that mandates firefighters who are forced to retire must be paid their unused sick days and vacation time.

Humphrey reminded aldermen shortly after she became the city's treasurer in 2004 there would be such situations and they could possibly cost the city some money.

"You are now seeing where it will cost you money," she said. "It will be a lot of money because there's a lot of sick pay and vacation time floating around out there. I would suggest looking into the future at similar situations."

Miller noted there was only one other firefighter who would have to be paid unused sick days and vacation time when his retirement date arrived.

Other finance agenda items to be considered by the council Feb. 16 include a $5,500 appropriation to fund Downtown Depot utilities for the year; $20,000 line item transfer to move one firefighter retirement payment from pension salaries to salaries line; $166,230 appropriation to fund additional work at Macon and 16th Street; appropriations of $45,000 (Engineer's Ditch Tributary No. 2), $75,000 (Engineer's Ditch) and $50,000 (traffic signal improvement) for projects in the street sales tax capital plan; and $4,800 appropriation to budget project animal control donations and fund department improvements.